Ambassador Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri: Economic sector needs to be strengthened with Indonesia

Jakarta: Zahid Hafeez Chaudhri, the Pakistani ambassador to Indonesia, this week mentioned the economic sector as one of the main areas to be strengthened during his tenure in Jakarta.

During an interview, he stressed the importance of enhancing trade cooperation between Pakistan and Indonesia.

“We already have a Preferential Trade Agreement with Indonesia. We are also working towards a free trade agreement (FTA) between Pakistan and Indonesia,” Chaudhri said. He added that the current trade value between the two countries exceeds US$4 billion, or around Rp65.5 trillion, and he hopes the figure will continue to grow.

Ambassador Chaudhri then highlighted the excellence of Pakistan’s textile sector. “We grow our own cotton, produce our own fiber, weave our own fabric, and manufacture our own clothes,” he said. Pakistan is also known as the largest producer of sports goods, especially footballs. “Seventy percent of the footballs used worldwide are produced in Pakistan,” he added.

In addition to goods, concerns have been raised about the service sector. Ambassador Chaudhri mentioned the IT sector as one of Pakistan’s strengths. “We have more than 400,000 IT professionals who would be happy to work with our Indonesian partners to apply state-of-the-art technology, including FinTech,” he said.

He added that Pakistan produces over 20,000 IT and 20,000 medical graduates every year from more than 100 medical schools. Chaudhri mentioned that Pakistani doctors and engineers are globally competent, and Pakistani technical universities are recognized in the Washington Accord. This allows their graduates to practice internationally without needing additional training.

Ambassador Chaudhri emphasized the importance of student exchanges between the two countries. He encouraged more Indonesian students, particularly women, to pursue an education in Pakistan. “We want to see more Indonesian students studying in our medical and engineering schools,” he said.

He mentioned scholarships as a form of support. “We want to see more partial and full scholarships for Indonesian students, not only based on payment,” he added.

In the defense sector, the envoy expressed openness to establishing closer collaboration. “We want to do more than sell weapon systems to Indonesia. We also want to hold joint exercises,” he said. He mentioned that a number of military officers from both countries have routinely participated in joint training.

Despite having just started his tenure, Ambassador Chaudhri said that he does not feel like a stranger in Indonesia. “I don’t feel like a stranger in this country. It’s a nation with a friendly and fraternal society,” he mentioned.